See Our Smuttynose Story on NH Chronicle TV

blogbrainsmall Seacoast History Blog #139
June 25, 2012

Word is that Maryellen and archaeologist Nate Hamilton and I will appear on on episode of NH Chronicle this Wednesday June 27 at 7pm. We’ll be talking about the archaeology dig at SmuttynoseIsland and showing off the exhibits at Discover Portsmouth. We won’t be able to catch the show because, coincidentally, we are out on SmuttynoseIsland that night. No TV, no electricity, no nothing. Like Gilligan’s Island, it’s primitive as can be. (Continued below)

Chronicle is rare in this world of instant broadcasting. They still do it the old fashioned way; they research a topic, tape the interviews, and edit them artfully. That takes time. I’m not aware of another station other than WMUR-TV that delivers a fully produced half hour newsmagazine five days a week, with the exception of their sister show in Boston.

WATCH THE WHOLE SHOW ONLINE CLICK HERE

Producer Jennifer Crompton and I go way back in the media biz. Heck, we were producing videos when people used tape. To deliver a project you actually had to get in a car and drive the tape to a studio where a guy sat behind a hugely expensive machine. No laptops, no wi-fi. Ever see the film Broadcast News? It was like that.

Look for details on NH CHRONICLE here

Jennifer Crompton of NH Chronicle coahses Maryellen Burke of Discover Portsmouth / SeacoastNH.com photo

I can’t tell you how the show came out. Like I said, I’m on an island 10 miles out to sea from Portsmouth. I wrote this a week ago and uploaded it to a Web server somewhere in the MIdWest. I ticked off a little box in the software that told some other computer to release this story today. A grammar school kid with an iphone has more computering power than we had back in those days. Heck, he has more computing power than NASA had when they sent men to the moon.

We’ve come a long way, baby.

But every year we like to get away from the digital planet. We slow things down to a crawl, drive no cars, spend no money, use no microwaves, watch no TV. Out here all we watch are sunsets and seagulls. We’ll look for the Chronicle episode online when we get back. Jennifer and her crew always do a super professional job. And if you have a boat, stop by and tell us how you liked the show. And don’t miss our exhibit in Portsmouth. It has only two months left to run before they tear it all down and put up something new.

JDR in the hot seat on NH Chronicle taping at Discover Portsmouth exhibit